Synonyms of nervy

nervy

adjective

ˈnər-vē 

1

as in wise

displaying or marked by rude boldness

the nervy waiter held up the small tip and called out to the departing customers, "Hope it doesn't break the bank!"

Synonyms & Similar Words

• wise
• cheeky
• bold
• cocky
• impudent
• brazen
• brassy
• fresh
• saucy
• sassy
• defiant
• insolent
• cocksure
• blunt
• assertive
• audacious
• brash
• impertinent
• cute
• brazen-faced
• arch
• smart
• bold-faced
• disrespectful
• obtrusive
• brassbound
• forward
• curt
• unabashed
• shameless
• flippant
• bluff
• unblushing
• mouthy
• facetious
• flip
• pert
• smart-alecky
• smart-aleck
• lippy

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• timid
• shy
• meek
• modest
• humble
• proper
• polite
• retiring
• courteous
• genteel
• mousy
• respectful
• deferential
• mild
• ashamed
• gentle
• embarrassed
• demure
• inconspicuous
• mannerly
• unobtrusive
• abashed
• shamefaced
• blushing

2

as in adventurous

inclined or willing to take risks

nervy rock climbers wanting to make gravity-defying ascents

Synonyms & Similar Words

• adventurous
• daring
• fearless
• courageous
• bold
• brave
• gutsy
• enterprising
• nerved
• hardy
• adventuresome
• venturous
• impulsive
• audacious
• reckless
• venturesome
• heroic
• dashing
• gallant
• valiant
• free-swinging
• emboldened
• foolish
• impetuous
• spirited
• incautious
• overconfident
• rash
• madcap
• thoughtless
• stupid
• intrepid
• brash
• foolhardy
• silly
• imprudent
• daredevil
• wild
• dauntless
• heedless
• unafraid
• plucky
• dumb
• hotheaded
• spunky
• undaunted
• hasty
• gritty
• mad
• valorous
• unnecessary
• nutty
• stalwart
• wacky
• scatterbrained
• overbold
• absurd
• irrational
• witless
• unreasonable
• stouthearted
• insane
• crazy
• headlong
• lionhearted
• idiotic
• swashbuckling
• lunatic
• stout
• precipitate
• asinine
• balmy
• moronic
• brainless
• greathearted
• harebrained
• half-witted
• gadarene

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• timid
• careful
• shy
• unadventurous
• cautious
• timorous
• wary
• unenterprising
• craven
• pusillanimous
• coward
• cowardly
• milky
• prudent
• fearful
• afraid
• frightened
• overcautious
• heedful
• scared
• terrified
• chickenhearted
• startled
• spooked
• alarmed
• lily-livered
• unnerved
• reasonable
• calm
• shocked
• horrified
• rational
• sensible
• sound
• milk-livered
• wise
• poltroon
• cool
• sane
• upset
• affrighted
• worried
• levelheaded
• overcareful
• concerned
• fainthearted
• terrorized
• sage
• dismayed
• appalled

3

as in nervous

feeling or showing uncomfortable feelings of uncertainty

I'm a little nervy about my first job interview

Synonyms & Similar Words

• nervous
• worried
• anxious
• upset
• uneasy
• troubled
• apprehensive
• tense
• uptight
• jittery
• perturbed
• hesitant
• jumpy
• concerned
• insecure
• ill at ease
• edgy
• goosey
• flustered
• disturbed
• queasy
• dithery
• on tenterhooks
• bothered
• antsy
• unquiet
• on edge
• on pins and needles
• restless
• distraught
• hinky
• het up
• obsessed
• aggrieved
• preoccupied
• freaked
• fretful
• distressed
• disquieted
• foreboding
• keyed up
• aflutter
• atwitter
• vexed
• shook-up
• freaked-out
• hung up
• fretting
• fidgety
• unnerved
• high-strung
• unstrung
• misgiving
• spooky
• fluttery
• flighty
• undone
• skittish
• qualmish
• stewing
• qualmy
• hypertense
• twittered

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• easy
• calm
• nerveless
• collected
• cool
• relaxed
• confident
• sure
• happy-go-lucky
• controlled
• self-assured
• self-confident
• self-controlled

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of nervy

Outside Boston last weekend, during Scotland’s first World Cup match in twenty-eight years, a nervy 1–0 victory against Haiti, McTominay heard plenty of familiar cheers. — Ed Caesar, New Yorker, 16 June 2026

Yet following closely behind is Noah Scanlon (Colin Firth), Wardex’s nervy CEO, who’s intent on burying the facts out of fear that humanity can’t handle this mind-expanding knowledge. — David Sims, The Atlantic, 9 June 2026

The sole film helmed by Oscar-winning actor Charles Laughton, The Night of the Hunter is one of the great one-off directorial efforts, a nervy chase movie drenched in Southern Gothic atmosphere. — Declan Gallagher, Entertainment Weekly, 9 June 2026

His serious, sometimes ponderous style is most vividly on display in Son of Saul, which uses the nervy technique of keeping the camera very close on one prisoner as hell is unleashed in the periphery. — Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 17 May 2026